South Africa vs. England: Winners and Losers from 2nd Test
South Africa played out a five-day draw that had everything in it for the batsmen and very little for the bowlers. Ben Stokes broke records for fun on Day 2, while Temba Bavuma made history on Day 4. The bowlers toiled their way through four days of brutal heat on a flat deck.
South Africa seems to have exorcised some of their batting demons and will take plenty of confidence into the third Test beginning at the Wanderers next week. We've picked some winners and losers from the second Test. Add your own in the comments.
Winner: The History Books
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Between Ben Stokes’ swashbuckling effort in the first innings and Temba Bavuma becoming the first black South African to score a ton for his country, the history books got a good going over. Despite the result, this Test will remembered by many for a whole host of different reasons.
Loser: The Pitch
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The weather conditions in Cape Town have been unseasonable. The lead-up to the Test saw two scorching-hot days, way above the average for this time of year.
The Newlands groundsman, Evan Flint, watered the pitch two days before in order to prevent it from breaking up as a result of the extreme heat, and whether as a direct or indirect result, we ended up with a very flat wicket, leaving fans from both sides low on confidence.
Loser: England’s Confidence
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No matter how flat the pitch, it’s rare for a side to score over 600 runs and not win. Considering South Africa’s batting meltdown from 2015, England will be kicking themselves for failing to put the Proteas under enough pressure.
Dropped catches were a particular concern, as England dropped seven in the field. Yes, it was hot out there and players were tired, but those dropped chances cost England over 250 runs.
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Loser: The Weather
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We’ve already mentioned the unseasonable heat in Cape Town that possibly contributed to the pitch, so it’s only right that the unseasonable cloud cover gets a mention too.
It does not rain this time of the year in Cape Town, and if it does, it happens in the deep, dark hours of the morning. That Day 5 played out with cloud cover, drizzle and bad light interfering with play must have been Mother Nature’s way of making England feel at home.
The overhead conditions did seem to offer the South African bowlers just a little bit extra, but who knows what could have happened if the Proteas weren’t made to bowl their spinners over two hours before the close of play.
Loser: Stiaan van Zyl
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Stiaan van Zyl was probably looking at the scoreboard the same way Boeta Dippenaar was looking at it during the 438-9 game. Van Zyl has struggled to adjust to this role as an opener, and his unnecessary run out simply underscored the mental demons he's been battling since hitting a slump in form.
Dean Elgar called “no” at least three times, but Van Zyl kept on running before eventually turning back and being found short.
Winner: Hashim Amla
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After a horrid time with the bat in 2015, Hashim Amla seems to have finally found some form again. A marathon innings of 201 off 477 balls saw him spend over 11 hours at the crease for the third time in his career.
He is the only batsman to have ever batted for 11 hours or more on three occasions with Alastair Cook, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Younis Khan all having done so twice. Amla the batsman is back. Now, Amla the captain just needs to find some inspiration for the last two Tests.
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